Starting today, I'd be learning magic. Mom had a somewhat complicated look on her face, but Dad was all fired up.
"From today, I'm going to teach you all sorts of things. But like yesterday's fire magic, some spells can be dangerous if you get even one thing wrong. So you must always do exactly as your father and mother tell you."
"The fundamentals are what matter most in magic. For the time being, I'll be focusing your lessons on studying from books. If you get bored along the way, or if you can't follow my instructions, your magic studies end right then and there. Understood?"
"Yes! I understand, Mom!"
"Very well."
Mom nodded with a smile at my response. Seeing that, I wondered what her expression had been at first, but Dad started talking, cutting my thoughts short.
"Your father here is thinking of teaching you how to use a bow and arrow and a knife. But it's still too dangerous and too early for you to use a real one, Tenma. So I'm thinking of using a child's bow, practice arrows without arrowheads, and a wooden carved knife for your training."
Dad then continued,
"The thing is, while I'm out hunting, I won't be able to teach you no matter what. So when I'm not around, you can either have your mother teach you, or you can walk around the village."
In other words, he just wanted me to walk around to build up my stamina.
"Yes, Dad!"
I received instructions in the morning and would start studying magic in the afternoon. Dad went out to make preserved food from yesterday's leftover boar.
"Now then, magic has several types called attributes. There's 'Fire Attribute' that uses fire, 'Water Attribute' that uses water, and things like that. There are also unusual ones—sometimes 'Space-Time Magic' and 'Alchemy' are counted as magic attributes too. I'll explain those later. So far so good?"
"Yep!"
"Good. Next is the types of attributes. In basic terms, magic has eight attributes: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, Light, Dark, and Void."
"If you say 'in basic terms,' does that mean there are some that aren't basic?"
My question made Mom smile like I'd hit on something noteworthy, and she said,
"That's right. Like the 'Space-Time Magic' and 'Alchemy' I mentioned before, sometimes the Light Attribute is called 'Holy' or 'White' Attribute, the Dark Attribute is called 'Darkness' or 'Black' Attribute, strong fire magic is called the 'Flame' Attribute, and within the Water Attribute, ice-type magic is called the 'Ice and Snow' Attribute."
"There sure are a lot, huh."
"That's right. Some people theorize that magic is essentially 'a single attribute called Magic Power,' and that its effects vary based on individual differences and how people think about it, which is how we ended up with the attribute classifications we have today."
"Whoever came up with that theory must have been either really smart or a pretty eccentric person."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because most people don't go that deep thinking about things they use every day or see all the time. So the person who came up with it was probably either a genius or a bit of an oddball, don't you think?"
Celia was stunned by Tenma's answer. Not just because of his surprisingly mature word choice for a three-year-old, but because he had nailed the public reputation of the person who proposed the theory. However, she decided to chalk it up to something Tenma had heard from one of the villagers—maybe the priest—while wandering around the village, rather than believing a three-year-old had come up with it on his own. Of course, she was careful not to press him on it in a way that would dampen his enthusiasm.
"That's right, just as Tenma says. As for the attributes, the reason is that you rarely get the chance to see anything beyond those eight basic attributes. In other words, you could call them the eight representative attributes."
"Space-Time Magic includes things like 'Flight,' 'Levitation,' and 'Gravity.' Though with 'Flight,' you can actually do that with Wind Magic too. Alchemy lets you decompose, separate, or construct things using magic circles, but it's cumbersome and difficult to master, so it's hardly used. At best, you can separate moisture from laundry. And even that's easier to do by just drying it with Wind Magic~"
Unlike in the manga he'd read in his past life, Alchemy didn't seem to be very popular in this world. Still, he was fascinated by the idea of "creating all sorts of things instantly just by putting your hands together," and he secretly resolved to train in it someday.
After that, he continued studying magic with his mother until evening, learning the basics as well as hearing the occasional story from her adventuring days.
— A Conversation Among Idle Gods —
God of War: "Haaah~ hmm."
God of Death: "What's wrong... making that awful sound..."
God of War: "How rude! Awful sound, you say!"
Goddess of Life: "Now, now, so what's the matter?"
God of War: "I've been watching little Tenma~"
Goddess of Earth: "Did something happen with Tenma~?"
Goddess of Love: "What is it, what is it~? What's going on~?"
God of War: "Whenever I watch little Tenma, I just feel this warmth overflowing from deep inside my chest..."
Goddess of Earth: "Ahh~ I know, right~ He's just so adorable, isn't he~ Tenma~"
Goddess of Love: "Totally~"
Death: "(Nod, nod.)"
Life: "Because his soul is still being fitted to his body, you know."
God of Beasts: "Mm."
Life: "Oh, you were here too?"
War: "Ah, the God of Beasts is always watching with me, you know?"
Love: "The way he stands there in that wolf-pelt cloak, peeking in — it really does look like a loyal hound worrying over its master."
God of Beasts: "///"
Death: "He's blushing…"
War: "Rival detected!"
Love: "No, that's not what this is…"
War: "Still, this feeling… could this be what they call maternal instinct///"
Love and Life: ""No!""
Death: "No… it's still creepy."
Earth: "My, my~"
War: "What's with you guys! Ganging up on me — so mean!"
God of Beasts: "…War God."
War: "You understand me, don't you, God of Beasts?"
God of Beasts: "…That is not maternal instinct. You are a man, so it would be paternal instinct…"
War: "So cruel! I'm a maiden, you know~~~" "~~~" "~"
A parting remark aimed at the War God as she dashes away—
Everyone: "No way!"
Celia: "Oh my~"
——END——
I wrote a little side story for you.
I do want to grow Tenma up quickly, but I plan to keep him small for a while longer. I'll be careful not to make this title fraud.